2015-02-15

Canadiens vs. Red Wings

Monday at Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena, 7:30 p.m., SNE, RDS, TSN Radio 690

PAT HICKEY

MONTREAL GAZETTE

Jockeying for  position: The Canadiens can open some ground between themselves and the third-place Red Wings in the Atlantic Division standings with a win. The Canadiens (36-15-4) currently lead the division with 76 points. The Red Wings (31-13-10) are four points back, but hold a game in hand. Each team is 7-2-1 in its last 10 games, but the Canadiens are coming off a 2-1 shootout win over Toronto Saturday night while Detroit dropped a 5-4 decision to the Winnipeg Jets at home. This is the third of four meetings between these teams and the Canadiens won the first two games. They were 2-1 winners in overtime at the Bell Centre on Oct. 21 and won 4-1 in Detroit on Nov. 16.

Play the under: This game will feature two of the top goaltenders in the NHL as Carey Price goes up against veteran Jimmy Howard. Price has the second-best goals-against average in the league at 1.98 and Howard is right behind him at 2.14. Nashville’s Pekka Rinne leads the NHL with a 1.97 GAA. The Canadiens continue to rely on Price because the offence ranks in the bottom third of the NHL. Max Pacioretty leads the way with 25 goals, while Alex Galchenyuk and Tomas Plekanec each have 16, but there has been no secondary scoring.

They shalt not hook: Or trip or interfere for that matter. The Canadiens can’t afford to take penalties because the Red Wings have the best power play in the league, scoring on 26.3 per cent of their opportunities. Henrik Zetterberg is the Wings’ leading scorer with 49 points, while the top snipers are Tomas Tatar with 23 goals and Gustav Nyquist, who has 12 of his 20 goals on the power play.

Gonchar out: The Canadiens’ depth on defence will be tested if veteran Sergei Gonchar is out for an extended period. His head made contact with the glass when he was slammed into the boards by Toronto’s David Clarkson Saturday night and Gonchar had to leave the game. He is out with an upper-body injury and didn’t accompany the team to Detroit. P.A. Parenteau is still out with a concussion, but is skating. The lone casualty for the Red Wings is Johan Franzen, who has been out since Jan. 7 with a concussion.

Habs call up Pateryn: With Gonchar on the sidelines, the Canadiens announced just after 5 p.m. Sunday that they have called up defenceman Greg Pateryn from the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs. In 49 games with Hamilton this season, the 6-foot-2, 222-pound Pateryn has recorded two goals, 11 assists and 56 penalty minutes. The 24-year-old was originally selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the fifth round of the 2008 NHL entry draft (128th overall). He was acquired by the Canadiens in July 2008 from the Maple Leafs, along with a second-round draft pick in 2010, in exchange for Mikhail Grabovski. Pateryn is pointless in three career NHL games with the Canadiens.

(Photo by Dario Ayala/Montreal Gazette)

Red Wings aim to bounce back against Habs, nhl.com

Habs sitting pretty with youngsters like De La Rose, by Jack Todd for Montreal Gazette

Subban fresh, ready for more after punishing night vs. Leafs, by Montreal Gazette’s Dave Stubbs

Subban can’t understand heat Kessel takes in Toronto, by Dave Stubbs

Can the Red Wings reasonably upgrade? Detroit Free Press

Tough stretch ahead for Red Wings, detroitredwings.com

Lowly Leafs nearly steal a win, by Montreal Gazette’s Pat Hickey

Subban picks up the slack on ice time, by Pat Hickey

Canadiens vs. Maple Leafs photo gallery, montrealgazette.com

Canadiens need shootout to beat Leafs, nhl.com

Fighting for each other, canadiens.com

Carey Price through his father’s eyes, canadiens.com

Leafs trade Franson, Santorelli to Nashville, nhl.com

Energized Leafs fall to Canadiens, Toronto Star

Leafs show they still have a pulse, Toronto Sun

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